Two more Uber drivers pleaded guilty today in an Ottawa courtroom to driving an unlicensed taxi.
While they were in court, across town, the head of Uber in Ontario was pumping up the ride-sharing company to the Economic Club of Canada. It's an interesting dichotomy. On the one hand, you've got Uber drivers paying fines and the city cracking down an unregulated industry. On the other, the company itself announcing this is an economic engine that can't be stopped.
Outside the Ottawa courthouse on Constellation Drive, taxi drivers and the head of the taxi union gather to celebrate what they see as another victory for Ottawa's taxi industry: two more Uber drivers pleading guilty and coughing up $400 in fines.
‘When someone comes to court voluntarily and says I agree I am breaking the law,’ says Amrik Singh, who heads the union for Ottawa’s taxi drivers, ‘that is the main thing; that is the main message to Uber,hey your partners are guilty.’
Eight Uber drivers in total were in court today, with most of the cases adjourned. One had his case quashed due to technical issues.
A total of 52 charges have now been laid against 25 Uber drivers since Uber started operating in the city of Ottawa in the fall of last year. With these two drivers today, it means that 17 drivers altogether have pleaded guilty so far to the charges against them.
‘I hope these guilty pleas are made so they deter those who entered these pleas,’ says Stuart Huxley, the senior legal counsel for the city of Ottawa, ‘and those who are like-minded to engage in this type of activity that they won't.’
While court was meting out justice, Ontario's head of Uber was weighing in on the economic power of the company. Speaking before the Economic Club of Canada, Ian Black said Uber is creating a million job opportunities world-wide.
‘We are becoming largest economic engine in the province,’ said Black, ‘Here in Ontario, we are on track to create 15,000 job opportunities. To our knowledge, that makes us greatest job creator in the province this year.’
Black agreed the industry should be to be regulated in Ottawa through a new licensing category for ride-sharing companies like Uber.
‘We need framework so that public safety can be taken off the table and people feel comfortable,’ Black told the crowd. He says insurance is still a sticking point but adds that they're working on that.
The Economic Club welcomed his message; the taxi union, meantime, had a message for them.
‘Don’t listen to these guys,’ Amrik Singh said.
The fines, meantime, continue to mount. So far the city has collected about $13,000 from those 17 drivers who have pleaded guilty. Ian Black says while Uber supports them, he wouldn't say if the company is paying their fines.
